Coal-to-gas fuel switching and its effects on housing prices

Nathaly Rivera and Scott Loveridge

Energy Economics, 2022, vol. 106, issue C

Abstract: We derive causal property value impacts of the coal-to-gas fuel switching conversion implemented by several power plants in the United States. We use an extensive dataset of property transactions around the country and adopt several spatial difference-in-difference approaches that use records of residential property transactions of homes with pollution exposure and proximity to the fuel-switching plants before and after the switch. The use of homes near coal-fired plants that did not innovate strengthens these estimations. The results suggest that the shutdown of coal-fired generators increased property values by roughly 12%–20% within 1 mile of distance from fuel-switching stations. These effects significantly increase once we consider wind exposure of homes around these plants, which brings to light the strong and localized disamenity effect of coal-fired power stations. Conservative back-of-the-envelope calculations suggest that the fuel-switching led to a $70-million increase in property values around the country.

Keywords: Fossil fuels; Coal combustion; Fuel switching; Environmental quality; Environmental valuation; Hedonic models; Housing market; Willingness-to-pay (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D62 L94 Q51 Q53 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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Related works:
Working Paper: The Coal-to-Gas Fuel Switching and its Effects on Housing Prices (2020)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:106:y:2022:i:c:s0140988321005818

DOI: 10.1016/j.eneco.2021.105733

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